Chicken Parmesan

I made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! It's quite the impressive-looking meal, but doesn't take a huge amount of effort.

recipe via/image via

For the Sauce:

7-8 garden tomatoes (if you don't have garden tomatoes, I would suggest using 1 large can of crushed tomatoes and 1-2 cans of diced tomatoes)

1/2 tsp salt

dash pepper

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 yellow onion, diced

2 Tbsp. dried basil

1 tsp. dried oregano

2 Tbsp. dried parsley flakes

1/2 tsp. sugar

salt and pepper to taste

1 small can tomato sauce

For the Chicken:

3 chicken breasts (pounded flat)

2 eggs, beaten

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 c. Panko bread crumbs

1 Tbsp. italian seasoning

1/4 c. parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

6 slices provolone or mozzarella cheese

1 lb. spaghetti

If you are using fresh tomatoes, peel them and mash them with a potato masher in a medium-sized bowl. Add salt and pepper, set aside. Heat a little vegetable oil in a large skillet and saute onion and garlic. When onions are clear, add the smashed tomatoes. Add basil, oregano, parsley, sugar, salt and pepper and bring to a good rolling simmer. Add tomato sauce (to thicken it up a little bit). It still may seem a little watery, but trust me, it thickens up quite a bit after it simmers. Reduce heat a little and simmer uncovered for at least an hour, stirring occasionally.

About 20 minutes prior to serving. Put chicken in a Ziploc bag and add beaten egg and garlic. Smash all the air out of the bag, seal tightly, then work the the chicken around a little bit so it is covered in egg. On a plate or pie pan, combine bread crumbs, parsley, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Heat some oil on medium heat in another large skillet. Remove chicken from egg mixture and press into the bread crumbs. When covered in bread crumbs, add the chicken to the oil brown on each side.

Place chicken on a greased cookie sheet and bake in the oven at 375-degrees for about 12 minutes or until no longer pink. In the meantime, cook spaghetti to al dente. Remove chicken from oven, add 2 slices of cheese per chicken breast, then return to the oven for about 2 minutes or until cheese is melted. Layer on individual plates: spaghetti, sauce, then chicken.